'Consumer Reports' yanks nod to Honda Fit

Jan. 22, 2014
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Honda Fit performed poorly in IIHS tests / IIHS

by Chris Woodyard, USA TODAY

by Chris Woodyard, USA TODAY

Consumer Reports magazine just yanked the recommended status of what has long been one of its favorite models: the Honda Fit.

The magazine says it can no longer recommend the Fit, Honda's smallest car, based on its last-place performance in a particular kind of a crash test.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety just rated the Fit as "poor" in the small overlap frontal crash test, which simulates running the car into a wall at 40 miles on hour on the driver's side only. IIHS says the test, which it instituted in 2012, is one of the most common for causing injuries or deaths to drivers.

Fit was one of 11 subcompacts tested by IIHS. Only one passed, the Chevrolet Spark, and the rest, including the last-place Fit, rated marginal or poor.

Honda just introduced a new 2015 Fit last week that it says will receive top marks in the new crash tests. That would allow it go from worst to first.

Consumer Reports, whose endorsements are most highly sought because of its reputation for independence, has long loved the Fit. In the February issue, CR compares a Fit to a Nissan Versa sedan. it calls the Fit "fun to drive, cheaper to own, more reliable" and that it provides "almost twice the value."